Hmmmm...

I saw this article in The Sun and didnt really know what to think about it. Was she really hired for her 2:1, despite the fact that many other students out there with the same qualification are struggling to get work? Or did she genuinely excel in an interview and deserves the job?

Natalie Brown

THE brainy beauty told she was too glamorous for a job is being taken on by a top advertising agency - thanks to Sunemployment.
Natalie Brown, 21, is all set for a placement at prestigious London firm M&C Saatchi.
We told yesterday how she was devastated after being told to "tone down" her pretty image by a small marketing firm. But she can now launch her career with the very best.

Natalie, of Holland-on-Sea, Essex, said: "It's a dream come true to be taken on by such a prestigious company. I am over the moon."
After reading about her case in The Sun, M&C Saatchi called her for an interview to fix details of a three-month placement.
The firm was set up by a founder of Saatchi and Saatchi - the famous company behind the iconic election poster "Labour Isn't Working", which helped the Tories sweep to power in 1979.
An M&C Saatchi spokesman said: "The group prides itself on only employing the best brains in the business.
"We admire Natalie's entrepreneurial spirit in contacting The Sun to tell her story.
"If she is as brainy as The Sun says she is, then we would love her to work with us. As such we have offered her a three-month work placement to show us how good she is."
She will help with the PR for massive firms like Coca-Cola, Reebok and Carlsberg.
The beauty - who has a 2:1 degree in advertising and marketing - turned down a job at a marketing firm after being told her looks might "give the wrong impression" to clients.
Natalie, currently waitressing, said: "We learned about Saatchis at uni. I never dreamed I could be working for such an amazing company so soon."

Photography Bans

'Jail for Photographing Police'

http://www.bjp-online.com/public/showPage.html?page=836675

This is an article which again shows restrictions being put on photographers, and limiting creative freedom.

The Power of the Media

'After 12 long years in power, this Government has lost its way. Now it's lost The Sun's support too. '

This was the statement that The Sun released recently which has caused so much controversy. Yes 'The Sun' is one of the more low budget and more 'gossipy' newspapers, however, it still has a large following of people who read it and could well be influenced by what it says. After backing labour for twelve years now it has finally lost its trust in them, have the people?

I think this article really shows the power of the media, in particular the press.

BAN ON ALCOHOL ADVERTISING!

'Doctors want booze marketing ban'

By Nick Triggle Health reporter, BBC News

Dr Vivienne Nathanson, the BMA's head of science and ethics said regulation is needed to stop the alcohol industry influencing young people to "drink earlier and drink more".

Dr Vivienne Nathanson: "Voluntary marketing codes are just not working"
There should be a ban on all alcohol advertising, including sports and music sponsorship, doctors say.
The British Medical Association said the crackdown on marketing was needed, along with an end to cut-price deals, to stop rising rates of consumption.
The industry spends £800m a year on promoting drinks - just a quarter of which goes on direct advertising.
Doctors said action was essential as alcohol was now one of the leading causes of early death and disability.
Only smoking and high blood pressure is responsible for a greater burden of disease, according to the World Health Organization.

ALCOHOL AND SPORT
Carling lager - Sponsors the football league cup in England and also has deals for shirt sponsorship of Celtic and Rangers in Scotland
John Smith's - Title sponsor of the Grand National plus other race days at the majority of UK racecourses
Magners Irish Cider - Sponsors two British rugby unions teams as well as Irish, Scottish and Welsh leagues
Johnnie Walker whisky - Sponsors of Formula One team McLaren

The cost to the NHS for treating injury and illness linked to drink has been estimated to be anything up to £3bn a year in the UK.
It comes as alcohol consumption has been rising rapidly in recent years with over a third of adults now drinking above the recommended amounts.
But the report said there was particular concern about the impact of marketing on young people.
The report points out that while the money spent on alcohol advertising - nearly £200m a year - remained significant, there had been a growth in more subtle types of marketing.
The alcohol industry had, in particular, become a major sponsor of sports events - second only to the finance sector in terms of overall funding.
But the report also highlighted merchandising, competitions and loyalty schemes as influential forms of marketing that needed to be tackled.
David Poley, The Portman Group: The BMA is "standing back and throwing stones at the system"
And as well as calling for the outright ban marketing and advertising, the BMA said there needed to be a reduction in licensing hours and tougher rules in place on price.
The doctors' body once again reiterated its call for minimum pricing to be introduced to help combat promotions such as happy hours and two-for-one purchases and higher levels of tax.
Price
Dr Vivienne Nathanson, the BMA's head of science and ethics, said: "The BMA is not anti-alcohol. As doctors our focus is to ensure that individuals drink sensible so they do not put their health and lives in danger."
Alison Rogers, chief executive of the British Liver Trust, said the report put a "compelling case for change".
"Alcohol is now marketed as a staple part of our diet in the UK.
"The way it is advertised, positioned in stores and its sheer cheapness leads people into feeling that buying and consuming large amounts of alcohol regularly is just the same as life's essentials like bread and milk."
And Don Shenker, of Alcohol Concern, added: "There's no longer any doubt - the heavy marketing and promotion of alcohol, combined with low prices - are encouraging young people to drink at a level our health services are struggling to cope with."

THE ALCOHOL IMPACT
Excessive consumption is linked to 60 different medical conditions, including liver and brain damage, some cancers and other diseases such as stroke and heart disease
The cost to the NHS for treating injury and illness linked to alcohol is estimated at anything up to £3bn a year
But the costs to the wider economy are even greater with loss of productivity said to be more than £7bn a year

Scotland, where minimum pricing has already been put forward by ministers, has also asked the UK government to review advertising and marketing - the devolved administration does not have the power to introduce such changes on its own.
But so far the Department of Health has resisted such calls, preferring to encourage the industry to sign up to voluntary codes.
It said its current approach, which incorporates the £10m Know Your Limits public health campaign to encourage responsible drinking, was having an impact.
A spokesman added: "We're working harder than ever to reduce alcohol harm — but it's not always right to legislate. We take all evidence into account and react proportionately."
And Jeremy Beadles, chief executive of the Wine and Spirit Trade Association, said the measures proposed by the BMA would hit the pockets of millions of consumers and threaten the livelihoods of thousands of people working in the drinks industry, media, advertising and television.
He said: "Britain already has amongst the highest taxes on alcohol in Europe.
"It should be obvious by now that higher taxation and higher prices don't curb alcohol misuse.
"The drinks industry is funding a major campaign to change drinking patterns amongst young adults.
"We believe culture change is more likely to be achieved through long term education and tough enforcement."

This is another article which shows more rules and regulations which companies combined with the government are creating and are having a large impact on designers. It is no longer a case where companies create an advert and put it on the tv, or radio, or posters etc hoping that people will be influenced to buy the product. It is now the case where the government are choosing what adverts are allowed and where they are allowed to go because people no longer have a brain to think for themselves! The minute they see an advert they go straight out and buy that product...dont you? Whilst adverts do have an impact they still enable people to think for themselves. Otherwise our cupboards would be full of every companies beer, toilet roll, chocolate...we'd have three different telephones using three different phone companies and goodness knows how many cars!?

Yet more rules and regulations

Photographer stopped from picturing over safety fears

By JO STEELE - Thursday, October 1, 2009


A photographer taking pictures on a beach for Help for Heroes was banned for health and safety reasons.
Steve Cook was about to start the shoot for the charity that helps wounded soldiers when he was stopped by a council warden.
The 42-year-old was told that, under a new by-law, he needed a permit to prove he had insurance to cover any injuries on council property.

The new edict could be a bureaucratic nightmare for wedding photographers. Mr Cook was stopped while snapping businesswoman Barbara Cox, who is in training for a trek across the Sahara, on Sandbanks beach in Dorset.
He said: 'I have done hundreds of shoots there before with no problems. It is ludicrous. It's not something you expect to happen on a beach - maybe a police officer outside parliament, but even then they haven't got the right to stop you taking photos.'
Mrs Cox, 42, had the photos taken to publicise her campaign to raise £5,000. 'I've done my training on the beach so I thought it made sense to have the photos there,' she said.
Poole Borough Council said, although it had not passed a by-law, it had introduced a permit rule, adding: 'Any organisation wishing to use council land for commercial photography must seek permission and provide evidence of public liability insurance.'

I thought that this article was very interesting. It brings up an issue which I have thought for a while is becoming more and more of a big deal. The government are slowly taking away designers creative expression and freedom through they extensive rules and regulations which they are continually bringing in. Whilst at the minute it doesnt seem a very big deal if it continues, it will be so hard and expensive for designers to paint, photograph and make adverts that we could lose a lot of the design industry.

http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?Photographer_stopped_from_picturing_over_safety_fears&in_article_id=746220&in_page_id=34

'Men are tired of their portrayal in advertising'

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/4204412.stm

I thought that this was a really interesting point of view, showing how the audience views the adverts which designers create. Often it is easy to just be on one side and not really observe the others point of view.

Design won't save the world

This is so true - how many top level designers think that by making one logo or creating a mug with Bob Geldofs face on it they are saving the world. I really can't stand those designer mugs where they donate 5p out of every £5 to a charity of their choice! Please!! I SO agree with this guy who wrote this article below

STOP SAVING THE WORLD …Unless you actually are. Designers have identified that their skills can help people beyond the mass markets of the first world, but we’re far from making a big impact on our own. The truth is, some designers like talking about making a difference more than they like actually doing it. Raising awareness is only a small first step towards fixing one of the world’s many problems. If you really want to make a difference, think about volunteering at a soup kitchen…or moving to India.
Ramsey Ford is an industrial designer who recently took on this challenge by moving to India and starting the non-profit Design Impact. "Last year, I attended the ‘Design for a Better World’ conference at RISD. What struck me most about the conference was that the common thread was not design, but entrepreneurship. The mantra for the weekend seemed to be, 'shut up and do it'." Ramsey plans to make a real difference by gaining empathy for India’s true design needs. Admittedly, this is pretty bold, but what have you done lately to design a better future?

Designers can really count

I found a brilliant article written by Roger Coleman from the Royal College of Art about design and older people. He looks at a wide selection of products from the toothpaste tube, pedal bins, razors, the twingo, hair dryers, handles, knobs, toilets, taps to name but a few! And it made me realise as I read his brilliant article how diverse a designers brief can actually be and how vital that we understand the consumers we are designing for. This article mainly focuses on practical design and one of the aspects I found so interesting was that in developing a product with a target audience of an "older" person the design also had more general appeal. Let me quote you one example from his article.
A Wilkinson sword razor designed to help men not cut themselves whilst shaving. This would be great for older men with poorer eye sight, men with tremors and people more unstable on their feet but what actually happened was that this also appealed to younger men. What about when they have a hangover, are late for work or generally in a rush to get out in the evening and don't want to go there covered in bits of tissue like my grandad used to when I was a little girl! So a product which had been developed for an entirely older market had a universal appeal.
And Coleman goes onto make the point that designers have a very real contribution to make- they can be a bit of an engineer and a technologist but in a more fun way. You can read the article here http://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=uv1BEgOz5pgC&oi=fnd&pg=PA74&dq=%22Coleman%22+%22Improving+the+quality+of+life+for+older+people+by+design%22+&ots=XMSNiA7mA1&sig=44IbKd49G76_pOwLTTB8s9S8tCw#v=onepage&q=%22Coleman%22%20%22Improving%20the%20quality%20of%20life%20for%20older%20people%20by%20design%22&f=false Its great!!

Stick to your beliefs

Being a designer can be a very hard world. Everyone gives you a different brief - an alternative suggestion. People either love your work or hate it. When they hate it you want to cry and when they love it you are on top of the world!

And I like the guy who wrote this - Spencer Nugent, co-founder of IDsketching.com, offers this advice. "Think of something unique you can bring to the table. One of our most unique and popular posts was on microwaving prismacolor pencils to keep them from breaking. That post alone brought over 10,000 new visitors to the site. Stick to your guns and be prepared to defend your point of view. You're putting yourself out there for EVERYONE to see. Not everyone will agree with you, so you have to be prepared to stick to what you believe in.”